To Join Fairy Tail
by Artistic Ane-san
Summary: Jeanne de Vajell has always dreamed to join Fairy Tail, but feels that she doesn't deserve such a place. Who will convince her otherwise? Rated K for mild swearing.


_The following text is a fan fiction. I don't own any of the characters or places mentioned, except Jeanne and her family. Flames, comments and critiques are accepted, though one of those will be looked at with scowling eyes. There are spoilers concerning a few characters. Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima. This takes place two years before Lucy joins._

* * *

I looked around my favorite guild with a sense of wonder. It never ceased to amaze me that they'd somehow always get in a brawl of some sort. And in the next five minutes it's like nothing happened, minus all the damage in the building.

Fairy Tail.

Where all the members are nakama, and loved and protected greatly. And each member holds something dark in their past.

Like the Strauss family, who lost a sister;  
the stripping Ice Mage, who feels responsible for the death of his mentor;  
the scary ex-quipping demon, whose past is filled with torture and trauma;  
the booze-loving card holder Mage, hoping to be noticed by her father;  
the destructive Dragon Slayer, abandoned (?) by his dragon parent.

And yet, they all smile, determined to not let their past hinder their future. This is my favorite guild. The guild I am not a member of.

I might say the reason I don't join this awesome place is because I'm too shy to talk to people and ask to join. But that's not quite true. The real reason would be that I'd feel unworthy.

All these mages struggled with something, and came out on top victorious. Me? I'm happy.

Oh, I could 'boast' on how I handled the bullying I dealt with in school because my magic had no offensive use and seemed cowardly, but, really, that's so shallow. Compared to losing a loved one, I've got nothing.

All these amazing people came from broken homes, with no where else to turn to, and Fairy Tail became their new home.

My home? It's a blessing. Sure, with twelve children around and a father working ten hours a day, it might seem like a hassle, but we're happy. My parents love each other and us very much, and no matter how tired Tou-san is, at the end of the day he's always willing to spend time with us.

That's why I can't join Fairy Tail. There's no place for me among these strong mages. It'd be like gloating about my happy life. But I can't stay away. They amaze me so much. I can't help but sneak in, using my magic to conceal myself, and watch in awe at these amazing, strong people, wishing that I could someday be just as good a mage as they all are. It's like a moth to a flame.

"They sure are rowdy, aren't they?" Master Makarov-sama said.

"Yeah, but that's what makes them Fai-oh My GOSH!" I slapped my hand to my mouth, looking around to see if anyone else heard me. Thankfully, they were too caught up in the fight.

I stared at the tiny man next to me. Then I looked at my hands. Yep, I was still concealed. I've often suspected I couldn't hide from the fourth master of Fairy Tail. So I'd always keep an eye out for him, and if he so much as glanced over me, I'd hightail it outta there.

This time, I was too caught up in my own world to notice him. Kuso. Now he's gonna berate me for stalking his guild. He'll never let me in through his doors again!

"Relax, child. No one can see you, and I'm not angry," Makarov-sama said, smiling. "Though, I am a little hurt that you've never introduced yourself in the eight years you've been coming here."

I blinked. Of course he'd know right from the beginning I've been coming since I was seven. I'd just wanted to see if it'd be a good place to join before I actually signed up, so I kinda scouted the place out. I quickly realized I had no place.

"What's your name, girl?"

"Jeanne," I whispered. "Jeanne de 'Vajell."

Makarov-sama smiled. "Now, that's a nice name. Tell me, Jeanne, wouldn't you rather join Fairy Tail than simply stalk us?"

My face lit up like a Christmas tree; I just knew I was beaming like a three-year-old. He's asking me to join? I could be a part of Fairy Tail? The word "YES" was on the tip of my tongue, before I remembered why I couldn't. My face fell a bit, but I still smiled. Just not as broadly.

"I'd love to, sir, really love to, but I don't think I have any place here." I figured it'd be better to tell him the truth, instead of that shy B.S.

"Oh, and what makes you say that?"

Crap. Now it's got to be the whole truth.

"Well, for starters, sir, I don't think my magic is Fairy Tail material. It's not offensive or defensive at all. In fact, it's downright snoopy..." I whispered. "And weak."

"Weak?" Makarov-sama raised an eyebrow.

I nodded. "I can hide myself from others, as you can tell, and conceal others if I wanted to. But there more," I added. "I can kinda see other people's past."

"See their past?"

"Over their heads, I can see a person at their weakest, and strongest. It's sort of like time stops for a bit and I see a short video clip of what would hurt them the most if I mention it. Like Natsu there," I pointed at the dragon slayer duking it out with the Ice Mage, "I saw that his worst moments are when he woke up to find his dragon missing, and when Mirajane-san and Elfman-san told him their sister died."

Makarov-sama was silent for a while. "That must be painful to watch," he finally said.

I shrugged. "I guess. Not as painful as it is for them though. It's not like I have empathy hits, I just know it'd hurt them. A lot. I've kinda learned how to turn it down, though. As long as I don't look in the purple haze, and try to tune it out, for the most part I can avoid it."

I looked at him. "I think it also depends on how much power the person has. I've never seen anything for you," I assured him.

We were silent for a while longer. Finally, the Master spoke again. "Is that all?"

I shifted in my place for a bit, wondering if I should state my next reason. "I don't think I'd fit in. I can see the struggles they've all overcome. I'd like to think that my life is far better off. If I joined, what would I have common? They've all done so much already; they have a bond that they share: triumphing over their past. I feel like if I joined, I'd just be gloating and rubbing in their faces how different I am from them."

Makarov-sama smiled. "My child, that's mighty kind of you, but you don't need to feel like you need to suffer in order to join." He looked me over. "You're from that large family, ne? Helena and Matthias's girl?" I blinked. Were we that well known? I nodded. "Well, my dear, that's strong in itself. To come from such a large under-privileged family, and yet still think of others before yourself."

"We're not under-privileged!" I protested. Really, we're not. And I don't think that I am who I am because of my family. "Sir, I thank you for the offer, but I don't really think I'd have a place."

Makarov-sama kinda... bristled. "Child, this is not a pity guild. We do not only take the orphaned or abused. In fact, many here came before they struggled in their lives, like the Strauss family, and Macao and Wakaba both came here for the jobs and experience. There is no application requirement of a tragedy in order to join."

I shifted uncomfortably, feeling rather ashamed.

He smiled gently. "Tell me, Jeanne, why do you want to join Fairy Tail?"

I had my answer ready immediately, knowing it for years. "For the jobs. I want to help support my family."

"Has that always been the case?"

I nodded. For a few years now, I've done odd jobs, like house cleaning and yardwork around the city, but nothing that really helps my parents. As the years went by, and our family grew larger, my determination to help grew stronger.

"Well then," Makarov-sama laughed, "I see no reason to refuse you."

My eyes started to water. "Is it... is it really okay?"

"I said it was, didn't I?"

Suddenly his fist grew larger, and he smacked away a chair hurtling toward us.

"KORA!" he yelled. "You brats need to knock it off already!"

Quickly the brawling ceased, with the exception two young men, still duking it out: Natsu Dragneel, and Gray Fullbuster.

"Flame-brain!"

"Pervert!"

"You're dead now!"

"That's if you can touch me, droopy-eyes!"

An ice shard was sent Natsu's way, but he dodged it quickly, and instead it came towards me. I shrieked a bit and ducked. The shard impaled the wall behind me before shattering.

"Mou! You're gonna kill someone if you keep that up!"

I slapped my hand to my mouth again, and looked around fearfully. I was still hidden, but this time, everyone heard me, and was looking for the source of the angry voice.  
Natsu and Gray stopped fighting, and the dragon-slayer sniffed the air.

"Oi, Ji-chan! That smell is back again!"

"Huh?" Gray asked. "What smell? What are you talking about?"

"What will you do?" Makarov-sama asked quietly, not looking at me.

My heart raced, and my head was spinning. What _will_ I do? Right now, I didn't want to do anything more than run away. _I hated_ being the center of attention, and once I undid my magic, I most certainly would be.

Taking a deep breath, I lowered my hands and showed myself.

Five foot eight, bushy brown hair to my shoulders, in torn up tennis shoes, ripped jeans, and a baggy shirt to hide my large chest (making me look fatter than I actually was) I stood in the door-way.

"I'm Jeanne de Vajell. Pleased to meet you." I bowed low, not looking at anyone.

The guild was silent for some time.

"Master!" a voice called out near the bar. "Is this a new guild member?"

I looked up. It was Cana Albarona, in her bikini top next to her regular keg of booze.

"Hold on a sec," said the man I recognized as Macao. "Isn't that the girl from the orphanage?"

Orphanage? Say what now?

"Ahou, that's not an orphanage! That's a whole family!" Wakaba laughed through his pipe.

The red-headed Erza Scarlet choked on her strawberry cake. "That big house with all the screaming kids is _one family?_"

"No way!" Natsu cried. "No one can have that many kids. They'd die!"

"Ahou!" Gray berated. "Just cuz the biggest family here is three, doesn't mean that's the case for others!"

"Oi, did the ahou just call me an ahou?"

"No, _I_ called the ahou an ahou!"

They came to blows after that, causing Makarov-sama to send a giant fist their way.

"Master!" a gentle voice called out. "Shall I sign Jeanne-san up?" Mirajane Strauss was holding up a large wooden stamp.

Makarov-sama looked at me, and pushed me forward. However, he had done this by slapping me on the butt, causing me to yelp and run a few steps ahead.

"Master!" scolded Mira-san.

"Hey, it's not my fault that's the highest I could reach~!"

Oooh, boy did I want to chew him out! But I didn't want to ruin my chances of getting in Fairy Tail. So I walked over to Mira-san with a beaming face. Everyone was already back to their own world, with Natsu and Gray glowering at each other with Erza between them, calmly finishing her cake. Macao and Wakaba were talking loudly about how the young people were taking over the guild, but not that they were complaining. Elfman was yelling something about me being a true man, and up on the second floor, I could see Laxus Dreyer, Makarov-sama's grandson, scowling down at me. I think I'd better avoid him for the most part; he would definitely see me as weak.

When I reached Mira-san, she smiled and asked me where I'd like my mark. I grinned back, and pointed at the place where I'd always known I'd have it. Five seconds later, branded on the inside of my left arm was a violet-colored symbol of my favorite guild.

Fairy Tail.


End file.
